This page was last updated on April 2023
Table of Contents
Is India open for visitors?
India is now fully open to international visitors. International travellers, irrespective of their vaccination status, can now enter India without having to quarantine. Furthermore, the government has also scrapped the requirement of Air Suvidha for arriving international passengers and presenting a negative PCR test report is no longer a requirement.
What are India’s vaccine requirements?
It is generally possible to enter India without being fully vaccinated. Moreover, according to the new guidelines released by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), presenting a vaccination certificate is no longer mandatory.
However, travellers should preferably be fully vaccinated as per the approved primary schedule of vaccination against COVID-19 in their country.
List of approved COVID-19 vaccines
The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has approved the following four vaccines for emergency use in the country:
- Covishield/AstraZeneca
- Oxford/AstraZeneca: Vaxzevria
- Covaxin
- Sputnik V
- Sputnik Light
- Moderna
- Corbevax
- Covovax
- ZyCoV-D
- GEMCOVAC-19
- iNCOVACC
- Janssen
Source: India – COVID-19 Vaccine Tracker (trackvaccines.org)
What are India’s entry requirements?
As per the guidelines released by India’s Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), the following on-arrival requirements must be followed by international arrivals to India.
- A small percentage of passengers (2% of the total passengers on the flight) will undergo random COVID-19 testing at the airport.
- The airline will choose which passengers will be tested, preferably from different countries. These passengers will submit their samples and be allowed to leave the airport.
- If any of the passengers’ samples test positive, the samples will be sent to the INSACOG laboratory network for genomic testing.
- These passengers will be treated and isolated according to standard protocol.
- All travellers should monitor their health after arrival and report any symptoms to the nearest health facility or call the national or state helpline numbers (1075 or State Helpline Number).
Please note that children under 12 years of age are exempted from both pre-departure and post-arrival random testing. However, if found symptomatic for COVID-19 on arrival or during the period of self-monitoring period, they shall undergo testing and be treated as per the laid down protocol.
Visit the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW) webpage for more details.
Transiting in India
International passengers are permitted to transit through India. Passengers may remain in direct transit at the terminal or proceed directly to the departure area, depending upon onward flight timings and the specific airport procedure. Passengers in transit are not allowed to proceed or pass through immigration or customs unless they can fulfil other requisite criteria.
